Valve trombonist
Bob Brookmeyer has recorded a number of compelling dates with European big bands for European-based labels, such as this session for Mons featuring Jazz Big Band Graz.
Q & A: Jazz Big Band Graz Plays the Music of Bob Brookmeyer is a constantly shifting, hard-driving post-bop chart that showcases soprano saxophonist
Klaus Gesing. "Eleven" sounds like the kind of chart
Brookmeyer might have conceived for
Gerry Mulligan, a piece both lyrical and tense. "Wedding Song" is a lovely ballad full of rich harmonies and a slight touch of melancholy; the leader is its only soloist.
Brookmeyer's delicious "Over Here" serves as an exciting finale.
Brookmeyer's richly textured writing is consistently challenging and well-served by the focused efforts of Jazz Big Band Graz. This warmly recommended German CD will be somewhat harder (but not impossible) to locate outside of Europe. ~ Ken Dryden